Mighty Expedite is an aptly named freight brokerage that’s relatively small but revolutionizing the trucking industry with its newest innovation. FreightNav is an app that does a remarkable job of getting freight where it needs to go faster and easier and so at the best possible rate.
The Mighty Expedite origin story is one of humble beginnings and a bright future. The company was founded 22 years ago by President Tim Wilson, who pulled his father out of retirement to help get the company off the ground, and it has come a long way in just two decades.
Mighty Expedite got its start in a ten-by-ten spare bedroom in Wilson’s home. From its tiny launch pad, the father-son duo would grow the company faster than anyone expected, attributing their success to conducting the business with honesty, transparency, and a solutions-driven approach. In no time, the company was looking for a new home.
The operation temporarily moved to different locations in Burlington and Stoney Creek, before settling on its current home in Burlington which houses its team of 13 plus five contractors, with plenty of room for growth. Tim’s father stayed on for 15 years.
Wilson touches on how the company got its catchy name, “At the beginning it was Mighty Transportation Services. We branded in 2008 to Mighty Expedite on the recommendation of a marketing company. They narrowed in on what we did best and that was expediting freight.”
Partners to rely on
While the company has changed throughout the years, one thing has remained the same: its commitment to partnering with reliable carriers to ensure that it moves its clients’ freight to where it needs to be, when it needs to be.
Mighty Expedite has built relationships with trusted carriers who offer robust equipment and resources to support freight of all kinds including materials, equipment, parts, natural resources, and dangerous goods. Carriers are paid promptly, and in turn, they provide exceptional service.
Its partner-based fleets offer direct less-than-truckload (LTL), over-dimensional and full truckloads, flatbeds, temperature control, double drop, and hand delivery – anything is possible. Its reputation depends on it, and at the company, reputation is everything.
As Wilson explained, “That’s why we have a good name: we don’t lie, and we provide a solution. If a carrier misses a pick, our customers are probably not ever going to notice because if that happens, we’ve already got someone else on the way.”
Wilson is now putting the company name and reputation behind his newest venture, FreightNav powered by Mighty Expedite.
Moving forward with FreightNav
The app is an innovative way to service digital customers who want quick quotes by using a custom-designed bidding platform in app form. Wilson describes it as the perfect complement to the white-glove service that Mighty Expedite’s customers have come to know and love.
“Mighty Expedite is not going anywhere because the FreightNav platform, as we’ve designed it, is not for everybody. We’re learning that for some of our customers and some of our targets it’s so modern that we’re trying to change a culture. I think that’s going to take some time,” says Wilson.
He notes that some of these clients still rely on telephone, satellite tracking and paper bills of lading, which are extremely inefficient methods and sometimes inaccurate. Satellite delays can average between twenty and thirty minutes whereas Freightnav has a three to seven second delay.
Inspired by his first Uber ride, Wilson imagined ‘trucking 2.0’ which could be achieved via a digital platform that functioned much the same, brokering the relationship between carriers and shippers using a streamlined and user-friendly app that was designed from the ground up.
As Wilson explains, “I found out Uber Freight was coming to Canada and they’re actually here operating, but I saw a lot of flaws in their model, and I saw an opportunity to design a program and a platform that hasn’t been done yet.” The groundbreaking app took two full years to come to fruition.
The FreightNav marketplace offers quick quotes without the middleman. Customers still benefit from the same service standard offered by Mighty Expedite, in addition to live chat 24/7, live map-tracking, quick-pay options, automated pick-up and delivery notifications, as well as driver- and document-management tools, all for up to 25-percent savings on every shipment.
In the first couple of weeks alone, hundreds of carriers signed up, many taking advantage of the free 90-day subscription trial on offer. So far, the feedback has been extremely positive, indicating that it clearly addresses a real demand in the industry, not least that of helping companies go paperless.
“We’ve only had a handful of carriers and shippers not interested, and that to me is extremely positive. It tells me that this program is going to succeed. It’s a big risk to take, it’s a lot of money and a lot of effort, but we’ve created eleven jobs just to start up,” says Wilson.
Industry-changing from the ground up
One of the prime characteristics of FreightNav is that it is designed not to be adversarial in nature. And with the advantage of being built from the ground up, it is designed to be foolproof and transparent, with integrity, efficiency, and ease of use at the forefront.
As Wilson notes, “It’s a bidding platform, but when posting loads on this new app, it doesn’t pit carriers against each other publicly.” That characteristic immediately put many concerns to rest, as there was a lingering fear that publicly vetting carriers against each other would diminish industry rates. By only allowing the shipper to see the multiple carrier bids, it is a system built on integrity.
The shippers have all of the rates in front of them, making a choice based on price, reputation, and service, thus rewarding companies for good business practices and fair pricing, and shippers are requested to leave a real time carrier rating after the shipment has delivered. Transaction fees are much lower than industry average, as monthly costs are based on volume, so there is incentive to utilize the platform regularly. Undoubtedly, this app could transform the trucking industry in North America.
A big reason why Wilson works so hard to grow the presence of Mighty Expedite by brokering freight and relationships with innovative platforms like FreightNav is because success enables him to give back to the community and the people who work for him. Mighty Expedite is a warm and casual place to work, where doing a job well is rewarded and innovation is encouraged. Targets are set and rewarded, and through the community-outreach initiatives it undertakes, employees can feel good about the work that they do.
Country and community
In particular, Mighty Expedite stepped up for its community in a time of need and made a donation to Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital as it combated the impact of COVID-19. Understanding that many were facing hard times during the pandemic, the company also sponsored fifteen families to receive meals at Christmas.
It doesn’t stop there, either. Recognizing the importance of organized sports, Wilson owns two not-for-profit hockey clubs with historical significance in his community, the Hamilton Kilty B’s Junior Hockey Club, acquired in 2015, and the Dundas Blues Junior Hockey Club, in 2020, and has committed to entering a new team, The Hamilton Henchmen, in the G-League for graduating Junior Hockey Players to ensure children from all economic backgrounds have the opportunity to participate in competitive hockey.
Through its outreach and outstanding expediting of freight, Mighty Expedite has made itself a leader in both the community and the industry. It looks as if its impact will continue to be mighty as it reaches for still greater success through its industry-leading digital platform and service.
Mighty Expedite and FreightNav are impacting the way the trucking industry in North America operates. And as the company finds new industry-changing ways to develop relationships and connect shippers and carriers, it will continue to enrich the community it calls home.
